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ISBN: 978-1-59005-566-3

Hardcover, 8.5 x 11, 400 pages, 18 duotone plates.

Unspeakable: The Collected Lyrics of Joe Henry, 1985–2020, is a compilation of lyrics that, when “raised by the waters of melody,” created a body of work that established the American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer as an American creative force. The volume features lyrics to 182 songs from Henry’s fifteen albums produced between 1985 and 2020, and nineteen additional songs written for, and with, other artists, such as Roseanne Cash, Mose Allison, and Billy Bragg. The volume also includes 18 black-and-white photographs made by the artist during this same time period.

Henry moved to Brooklyn, NY, in 1985 after graduating from the University of Michigan. His first album, Talk of Heaven, was released the following year, launching what would become a steady output of work that is astonishing in both scope and influence. In addition to writing and producing his own lyrics and music, the three-time Grammy Award winner has produced albums for Bonnie Raitt, Elvis Costello, Rhiannon Giddens, and Solomon Burke, and written songs for numerous films. His work spans multiple genres, including folk, jazz, blues, and rock, yet is united by its tender tone and strikingly visual lyrics.

In the introduction, Henry notes that he began by writing poetry and then “listening just so” for the songs to reveal themselves, rendering them “wholly transformed into something that hums.” It is this poet’s heart that informs each of his lyrics, creating songs that continue to hum on the page, with or without the music.

Unspeakable: The Collected Lyrics of Joe Henry, 1985–2020 is the first title in our new ‘Nazraeli / anatol’ series of song books: collections of important and influential lyrics punctuated with original artwork made by the featured artists themselves, or by other contemporary artists.

Printed on natural matte art paper, and bound in deep green cloth with a black quarter binding, Unspeakable is published in a first edition of 1,000 copies.

A special edition of 250 copies, numbered and signed by the artist and presented in a custom cloth slipcase, is also available.

“Joe Henry is one of our great American songwriters.” — NPR, All Things Considered

"A masterful artist, we need Joe Henry’s voice. Listen carefully. Listen closely. There is a spirit here. Let it speak to you.” — Lucinda Williams

“Here is the voice of a friend and brother who had been away too long. There is enough anger, enough misery in the world. Too many tears, fires and trampled flowers, so make room in your life for some beauty like this.” — Elvis Costello